


Change of Mind

by LiteratureNerd



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Ironwood is a jerk, May a teasing brat, Meaning, Minor Character Death, Robyn a flirt, Semblances are still a thing, Smut, Winter learns that the soldier life is not everything, and Fiona adorable, not beta read we die like men, some NSFW in chapter 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2021-01-06
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:22:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28412346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiteratureNerd/pseuds/LiteratureNerd
Summary: Special Operative Winter Schnee thought this whole thing was just another mission.She was so very wrong.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Robyn Hill/Winter Schnee
Comments: 10
Kudos: 65





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This whole story just exists because of this:  
> https://twitter.com/snowbyrd/status/1322871214864506885
> 
> This ship honestly needs more love.

Winter glanced at the picture on her scroll one last time. It was not like she actually needed the visual reminder of her next victim, Mayor Robyn Hill was well-known and her face had been all over Mantle even before the election. It was just that a certain routine made things easier for her. 

She sighed, while she didn’t know Robyn Hill that well, she had seen her occasionally during her school years. The blonde woman was a few years older and had already been in her last year when Winter had started her first. A girl from Mantle who had managed to get into Atlas Academy, even back then the tall woman had been a livid activist who knew how to get attention from the public. 

So yes, Robyn running for mayor wasn’t a surprise to Winter, the surprise was that Robyn had become so powerful that the Atlas military considered her a threat. This was also the reason why she was currently hiding in the shadows in some smelly alley somewhere in downtown Mantle. 

If Winter was being honest then she disliked the city of Mantle. It was dirty and the people weren’t any better. Not that she liked where she grew up either, as a child she had dreamed of leaving Atlas and Schnee manor far behind her, but attending the military academy against her father’s wishes had changed her plans. The teachers had quickly seen her potential and convinced Winter to actually enlist after graduating. Afterwards it didn’t take long for her to start climbing the ranks so quickly that she caught even the General’s eye. 

Special Operative Winter Schnee of the Atlas Military. Her military rank sounded a lot better than Winter Schnee, daughter of Jacques Schnee.

The young soldier sighed quietly. It was moments like this that made her regret never having picked up a habit like smoking, most missions tended to be boring and there was no way to pass the time in an unsuspicious way. And right now Winter was absolutely bored, she had been waiting here for at least three hours now, just what was Hill doing in that bar for so long? It was no secret that the newly elected mayor liked to mingle with her people, but it was cold and Winter wanted to finish her mission so she could return to Atlas. 

“Thank you so much for your visit, Mayor Hill.” Winter held her breath and pressed herself against the wall that was hidden by shadows when she heard voices. 

“The pleasure was mine.” A female voice Winter would recognize anywhere. “I make sure to bring my friends along the next time I visit. For a less formal evening, I’m sure your drinks are just lovely as your company.”

“Of course mayor Hill, feel free to visit whenever you want. You have done so much for Mantle and its faunus community. The absolute least I can do is to always keep my door open for you and your friends.” 

“Sadly not as much I’d like to do… but thank you. I appreciate it.” There was a heavy silence that followed, just like Robyn Hill was well-liked by the citizens of Mantle, it was not exactly a secret that even she couldn’t do much as long as the Atlas councilmen voted against her plans. Of course that didn’t stop her from trying. In the short time she had been in office she had already raised the minimum age for faunus workers in the mine. Now faunus needed to be at least 21 before they could apply for a job there! It wasn’t perfect, but it was a huge success in the fight against child labor. 

The soldier knew, thanks to her two younger siblings, that her father had been absolutely furious thanks to this law since he lost many cheap workers. Faunus child labor was cheap and once more Winter was just absolutely disgusted by her old man. 

Then there were steps and Winter pressed herself closer against the wall, the young soldier was completely out of sight and nothing in Robyn’s movement indicated that she had noticed her. She was walking down the streets and Winter was a bit confused. According to her informant the blonde was supposed to go straight home now - where she’d be completely alone. 

Winter tailed her carefully; she stayed far enough away to not draw any attention as she followed the taller woman. She stopped at a little market where an old lady with weird glasses was selling local vegetables and while Winter couldn’t see what Robyn was buying, she saw the Lien and the bag getting exchanged. Then both women laughed about something, probably a joke? Winter wasn’t sure. 

Robyn waved and continued walking, but she still wasn’t going home. The streets started to look dirtier, the houses older and their condition seemed awful. Some houses were missing their windows, some had their doors nailed shut. The young mayor then suddenly stopped in front of a rather big building that seriously needed a paint job and a new door. 

After Robyn had vanished inside, Winter checked out the entrance.

“Orphanage…” Muttered the young soldier and sighed. “I guess my mission won’t be completed today…” 

When Winter retreated back to the small motel where she was currently staying, she dreaded that she would need to inform the general about the mission’s current status. She quickly changed into her uniform and made sure her tie and collar were in perfect shape before taking a deep breath and pressing the video call button on her work scroll.

“Special Operative Schnee reporting in.” She started and waited.

“Winter, it’s good to hear from you. Was the mission a success?”

“Sir, I apologize, but I don’t have positive news. Our informant was wrong, the target was not alone at home as we have been told. I tailed her for a while, but I had no chance to act without getting seen. I’m sorry sir, but I couldn’t risk getting caught.” Winter explained, trying to keep her voice steady and professional. She was General Ironwood’s best and most trusty soldier, she couldn’t allow herself to make any mistake. Nor could she afford to show any feelings.

“I see. That is unfortunate.” The general’s voice was as sharp as always and Winter mentally prepared herself to get completely chewed out by her commanding officer. “We can’t trust our informant then, I expect you to act accordingly and dispose of any proof that we worked with them in the first place. I also want you to try a different approach. Get close to Hill, get into her inner circle and get her trust, then it should be easy to take her out in a way that won’t make her a martyr.” Winter saluted quickly and just when she wanted to end the call, Ironwood spoke up once more.

“One last thing.” Winter waited for Ironwood to continue. “We can’t allow someone like Hill in a political position like this, her elimination is a top priority. Do you understand, Schnee?”

“Yes, Sir.”

Then the screen went black and the young soldier was alone with her thoughts. Getting close to Hill and gaining her trust… would take a long time. How would she even do this? It’s not like she could just walk up to her and decide that they’d be friends from now on. No, Winter would need to think about this carefully. She’d need to be smart.

She sat down at the table, luckily the motel room had somewhat nice furniture that would allow her to work comfortable with enough of free space. For most of the night she stayed up and looked up facts about Robyn Hill, she checked her social media, her friends’ social media and even the social media from some random party members. 

To her surprise there wasn’t a lot she could find out about who Robyn Hill was as a person, the only things she found were about Robyn Hill the politician and activist. There were a few pictures of her with always the same group of people though, a small sheep faunus, a woman from the Marigold family that Winter had met before under different circumstances and a rather tall woman with a surprisingly dark taint for someone born in the Kingdom of Atlas. Fiona Thyme, May Marigold and Joanna Greenleaf. Four friends with completely different social backgrounds.

Of course Winter knew their names, she had been prepared well for this mission after all. Robyn was living with all of them in one house which made it harder to get to the blonde mayor undetected. They called themselves Happy Huntresses and all of them had been friends since their Academy days. Just like Winter they had attended Atlas Academy, though all of them were older than her. And another thing was different, unlike Winter they never joined the Atlas Military afterwards. 

Ironwood called them anarchists and enemies of the system, but so far Robyn had only done good stuff. Like improving faunus rights and increasing money for orphaned children. But Winter was a soldier, she wouldn’t question Ironwood’s opinion and order, he always knew what was best for Atlas.

There was also the issue that May had met Winter before. It almost felt like a lifetime ago, back when Winter had still been the SDC heir and May had been… different. The specialist wasn’t particular fond of the Marigolds and she just hoped that May wouldn’t endanger the outcome of this mission by recognizing her.

When she glanced at her scroll she noticed that it was past 2AM already, so with a quiet sigh she decided to go to bed for today. There wasn’t much she could do right now anyway.

Three hours later Winter was already up again and doing some push-ups on the not so clean floor of her motel room. Years of soldier life had been drilled into her mercilessly and even with her rank she never dared to slack off. Being fit and strong ensured survival, and Winter Schnee would never be at the bottom.

“56… 57… 58...” Winter muttered while she kept pushing her body up and down. She was barely breaking a sweat, morning exercises hadn’t bothered her since her early academy days. After a few more she finished up and got ready for a shower. The bathrooms weren’t perfect here, but Winter didn’t complain – as long as she was able to get clean she was happy.

Today would be a rather busy day, she’d need to figure out a way to get closer to Hill without blowing her cover. This might be more difficult than Ironwood thought, Robyn Hill was a careful woman, especially since one of her friends had been hurt during a rally and only barely survived the blood loss and surgery afterwards. 

No, the eldest Schnee girl couldn’t just walk up to the mayor and befriend her, she needed to do something entirely different. That was when she remembered the bits of conversation she had heard yesterday. Hill and her friends would visit that pub together, so Winter’s best chance was probably to wait there evening for evening until she finally showed up.

She’d need to inform general Ironwood of this plan, but he hardly disagreed with the way she handled her missions. She had an almost 100% success rate, not even the Ace Ops were as successful as her and they were Atlas’ special elite team. 

“I hope they serve water there…” Just thinking about drinking alcohol made her cringe, she had spent too much time of her life around a depressed drunk and an angry drunk. And despite her father’s yelling whenever he had a glass too many after a long business meeting, the sight of her mother drinking herself unconscious was forever burned into her eyes and brain. 

The soldier checked the time on her scroll and sighed, it was still early, the sun hadn’t risen yet and she had hours to kill until she would start going to that bar to look out for Hill. So she continued her research from last night for a few more hours before deciding to look around Mantle. It couldn’t hurt to get more familiar with the environment of her current mission. 

The streets weren’t exactly empty, but it was easy to walk around and avoiding walking into other people. She noticed in this area the houses looked a lot better and there were noticeable less faunus. Winter stopped to buy herself a hot coffee with neither milk nor sugar and continued her explorations. As a child she hadn’t heard a lot of nice things about this city, but as she had grown up she started to understand more and more about this place.

Mantle got fucked up by Atlas. They didn’t teach this stuff in school and Atlasian elitists denied this whenever they could, but this was the truth. 

At least the coffee here was good. 

Winter kept walking and eventually she found a little market close to the faunus parts of the city. Humans and faunus seemed to be evenly mixed here and Winter suddenly felt very overdressed. Those people here looked like they crawled straight out of the slums or mines, they were dirty, wearing old work clothes and they were covered in dust. It sparkled slightly in the sun and was a stark contrast to the brown dirt. Winter felt completely overdressed in her casual Atlasian civilian clothes given to her by the military. Apparently they hadn’t done their research very well since she wasn’t blending in at all. Winter made a mental note to buy some local clothes later.

The food here didn’t look any better than the people, it looked like scraps and leftovers. Was this really a way to live? Those people lived like animals while the people in Atlas threw food away when they didn’t like the way it looked. Once more Winter felt disgusted, was Ironwood aware of this? Why didn’t he send soldiers to help those people? He was the most powerful man in Atlas, he could change things here if he wanted. Winter decided not to think about it.

Winter decided to return to the motel, though first she bought a few new clothes. A simple coat and a matching shirt as well as a new pair of pants. Now she’d at least blend in easier with the rest of the crowd. 

She also somehow managed to keep herself busy for the rest of the day until it was time to check out that bar. Winter’s expectations were pretty low regarding this since she was sure that Robyn wouldn’t return right the next day, so this gave her time to get established as a new regular in town. 

At least the barkeeper was nice. 

“New here?” He asked rather casually while handing her a bottle of water she had ordered. Winter nodded sharply. “Your accent is Atlasian… what’s an Atlasian doing here in ol’ Mantle?” As if to emphasize his words he spoke using a common local accent. 

“Had to get away for a bit.”

He seemed satisfied with the answer, plus Winter had made it clear that she had money and that she was willing to pay a lot for her water. She looked around, the place didn’t look too bad and the customers seemed okay. Nobody was completely wasted or particularly obnoxious. That was nice. Furthermore she was surprised that both faunus and humans were sitting together here. Usually in the less rundown areas of Mantle people were rather racist towards non-humans. 

“Give me another water.”

“Not big on alcohol?”

Winter glared at him and he sighed before handing her another one. “Also not much of a talker, I see.” She ignored him and stared at her glass. This was honestly the most unusual mission she had ever had. 

\---

Days passed with Winter repeating the same routine day for day. Nothing happened and Winter almost considered changing her strategy and leaving early when the usual quiet bar suddenly became very lively. 

“Hill!” The barkeeper called our and Winter turned her head, eyes wide. There she was, Mayor Robyn Hill. And next to her were May Marigold, Fiona Thyme and Joanna Greenleaf. In the flesh and in reach. Winter needed to keep her cool, so she immediately turned around again. If she messed this up now, the entire mission could fail.

So she calmly reached for her scroll to send the general a quick message.

The robin is in the nest.

The code that indicated that the mission had started. As expected there was no reply, Winter pocketed the small device and pretended to be focused on her water again. The entire bar seemed a lot happier and active compared to the other days the young soldier had spent here. Robyn was always the center of attention, she joked around, started playful arguments and teased her friends. Winter was hyper aware of her voice, her Mantle accent was weak, probably from years of training in Atlas before returning to her hometown. 

“What about you, newbie?” Startled Winter looked up, she had been distracted only for a second, but it had been long enough for the young mayor to sneak up on her. “Haven’t seen you around here, and I know my people.” 

Winter had to suppress a shiver and almost gulped, Robyn was way too close to her and that deep, strong voice really messed with her senses. 

“I’m Winter…” 

Robyn paused as if she was trying to figure her out, despite her rank Winter hadn’t been in the public since leaving the Schnee family behind. But what if Robyn recognized her from the academy? Or even worse, what if May recognized her? 

“Winter, huh? Suits a pretty Snowflake like you.” Wait, what? Was that… flirting?! “So tell me Snowflake, what’s taking you, an obvious soldier to this bar down in Mantle?”

Winter guessed that her posture had given her away, but she was prepared for this. “Ex-soldier.” She sipped from her water to hide any facial movement that would expose her lie. “Seen some things and now I’m early retired. I just couldn’t stay in Atlas any longer.”

“That’s a mood if I have ever heard one.” Robyn sighed, simply flopped down next to her and waved the barkeeper over. “I’m taking what she’s taking.”

“So… water?” Robyn looked at Winter when the barkeeper revealed the content of her glass and Winter actually felt her cheeks flush slightly. There was nothing wrong with staying away from alcohol, but somehow she felt embarrassed. 

“Sure, I trust her tastes.” To Winter’s surprise Robyn just shrugged and got a glass of water as well. “Alcoholic father?”

“Mainly mother.” Robyn nodded in a surprisingly soft way and Winter avoided her gaze. “Sorry to hear that, didn’t want to ruin the mood or anything. Let me make it up to you.” The blonde offered and skillfully changed the topic, Winter was genuinely impressed by the older woman. 

Even though the conversation was somewhat awkward, Winter didn’t really feel uncomfortable by the taller blonde’s presence. They just chatted about a few random things and enjoyed the evening. 

As it was getting closer to midnight, the other Happy Huntresses seemed to get more intoxicated and louder – Fiona had been standing on a table earlier, though Winter had no idea why – but her and Robyn just sat there at the bar. 

“So, where are you staying, Snowflake?” Robyn finished the rest of her current glass.

“There’s a motel close by, I like it there.”

“You know, I’d really like to show you Mantle, are you free this weekend?” Winter froze for a moment, just what was happening? She was supposed to assassinate this woman, not get excited by the prospect of a date. 

“I’d like that.” Winter replied with only the hint of hesitating. “And yes, I’m free this weekend.” She noticed that Robyn was writing something down on a small slip of paper. 

“Here’s my scroll number, text me if you’re up for some adventuring in Mantle.” 

Winter eyed the paper and to her surprise Robyn had a neat and almost flawless handwriting. She pocketed it and nodded. “I will.”

“Well, as nice as this evening was, I gotta make sure my friends get home in one piece.” Robyn used her thumb to point over her shoulder. “Fiona likes to drink a bit too much for someone her size and May gets very cuddly very fast when alcohol is involved.” Winter had a hard time believing that, from the past she only knew May as this stiff, awkward teenager who couldn’t smile and barely ever talked. Maybe Mantle had been good for her. 

“I see you around, Snowflake. Gimme a call.” The blonde got up with a wink and stretched while Winter gave her best not to stare at her chest which suddenly seemed to stick out a lot. 

“Yes, this evening was nice…”

Winter then watched Robyn collect her intoxicated friends and she actually smiled. It had been indeed a lot of fun, Robyn was a great conversation partner. And nothing like those rich, snobby politicians she met before.

Later, back at her motel room she placed the piece of paper with Robyn’s number on the desk before reaching for a scroll. 

Did the robin sing?

Ironwood’s code for asking whether Winter had been successful or not. She decided to video call. 

“Winter, I’m glad to hear from you. Was the mission a success? Is Hill out of the way?” The soldier shouldn’t be surprised that Ironwood was still awake at a time like that.

“Sir, negative. Robyn Hill is up and well, but I seem to have a date now.” It was quiet for a few moments.

“…”

“…”

“What?!” Winter flinched at the harsh tone of her commanding officer and almost dropped her scroll. “Special Operative Winter Schnee, explain yourself.”

“I waited for Hill in the bar and after some talking she gave me her scroll number. Next weekend we’re going out together, she wants to show me Mantle.”

Winter noticed that Ironwood was stroking his beard in a way he usually only did when he was deep in thought. “I don’t like this outcome, but at least you managed to get close to her. Just remember your mission, Specialist Schnee. Atlas comes before anything else!” 

“Yes sir, I understand!” The young woman saluted quickly and the general wordlessly ended the call just like that. If Winter was being honest, then this was the first time she didn’t like a mission and she actually questioned orders, but she obviously wouldn’t dare to express her doubts. 

The soldier sighed, what should she do now? She had her orders but nothing she could do right now. Winter wasn’t made for this, she always needed to do something to distract herself, even if it was just training. 

“Might as well text her already…” Muttered the eldest Schnee girl and snatched the piece of paper from her desk. 

“Dear Ms Hill.” Winter paused, this was far too formal for a casual text message between friends. 

“Hello Robyn.” Better, but still not great, so she deleted the text once more. 

“Hey Robyn.” Not perfect, but it would suffice. She pressed the send-button after another deep breath and wanted to put her scroll down again, but she almost immediately got the ‘new message’ notification. 

“That you, Snowflake?” Winter felt her heart beat faster at the simple message and she allowed herself a small smile.

“Yes, I’m Winter. From earlier.” 

“Didn’t expect you to actually take up on my offer, but I’m glad you did. So, how does next Saturday evening sound? I could take you to a small restaurant that makes great Mantle cuisine! According to Fiona even their faunus recipes are great.”

Winter wasn’t sure what to think, she had her mission… so spending time with Robyn would be her best option. 

“Yes, that sounds pleasant.” She replied and got a ‘lol’ in return. She wasn’t sure what was so funny about her message. 

“Don’t worry, you’ll stop talking like an Atlasian snob once you settled down here in Mantle. My friend May only needed a few months to get completely used to the Mantle accent. She even speaks it flawlessly these days.”

“That sounds reassuring. I’m looking forward to it.” A Marigold adjusting to the Mantle way of life that easily? That was a surprise Winter hardly could believe was true.

“You’re adorable Snowflake. Anyway, text me the name of your motel, I’ll pick you up next Saturday around 6PM. My treat.”

“Yes, I will do that immediately. Thank you.” Winter was almost sad that their conversation had ended so quickly, but maybe they could keep texting those next few days. 

The soldier quickly texted Robyn the name and address of her current location, then she finally decided to go to bed. She hadn’t noticed how late it was by now and Winter felt surprisingly tired after this evening.

The next day Winter woke up the same time as always, she did her morning exercises and checked the news on her scroll. Around seven she suddenly got a text message.

“Morning Snowflake, I hope I didn’t wake you up?” 

“Good morning. No, I have been up for a while now.” She replied quickly and the same warm feeling she had in her stomach like last night returned. She also hadn’t noticed last night, but Robyn was using proper grammar and spelling when texting her and she really appreciated that.

To her surprise chatting with Robyn didn’t get boring even though they only wrote about very trivial and unexciting things. Robyn had just a way with words that drew the soldier in, that kept her attention without making her tired. Once more Winter wasn’t surprised that this woman had managed to become mayor of Mantle. 

Sadly they couldn’t keep messaging forever, the blonde needed to take care of some important business and Winter understood how important ones duties were. Plus she needed to read some reports as well. 

-

The next few days were spent in similar manners until it was finally Saturday. Winter had considered buying a new outfit for this day, but she didn’t want to be overdressed. She also had never been particular fond of formal wear thanks to her long gone days as the Schnee heiress.

“I’m outside.” Robyn had informed her of her arrival. Winter checked her tie one last time and nodded. She was just wearing the same clothes she had worn at the bar in addition to a new necktie. She then pocketed her scroll and grabbed the keys.

“Hey, Snowflake.” Robyn looked like always, she wore her usual clothes and she was smirking confidently, though her hair seemed a little bit less messy. “I really hope you enjoy some good Mantle cuisine!” 

“Hello, Robyn.” Winter stood a bit too straight to pass as civilian. “I’m sure I will like it, so far your company has been nothing but pleasant.”

“Still talking like an Atlasian? Don’t worry, we’ll get rid of that.” The taller woman smirked and Winter felt herself blush. She was sure that by the end of the night this woman would drive her absolutely crazy. That wasn’t the surprise here though, the surprise was that Winter was actually kind of looking forward to that.

“Where are you taking me, Robyn?” Winter asked and Robyn just smirked again. “It’s a surprise, Snowflake, but I’m sure you’ll like it. Fiona recommended the place and she has great taste.”

Winter Schnee didn’t like surprises or not knowing what will happen, but since they were just getting food it probably wouldn’t be too bad. 

“Mantle seems… interesting.” 

Robyn scoffed. “Interesting? Seriously? Just say what you think, us people from Mantle know that the place is completely run down. But we’re making due with what we have while those people in Atlas don’t know what to do with all their excessive food and money.”

Winter almost flinched at the sharp tone. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault, Snowflake. You’re a soldier, I know your kind. You probably attended Atlas Academy and then enlisted. Serving six days a week without a real break in years… Atlas knows how to groom their soldiers. I would know, I graduated from Atlas Academy as the best of my year.”

Winter was silent, she wouldn’t exactly call it ‘grooming’. The military had given her a way to be free which she hadn’t been while living with Jacques. “I own the military my life.”

“Maybe you do, but it certainly didn’t make you happy. Otherwise you wouldn’t be an ex-soldier right now.”

Right, ex-soldier. The lie Winter had told her during their first meeting. 

“I was at Beacon. During the war.” That wasn’t a lie. “The things I’ve seen will last for a lifetime.” 

“Beacon, huh… I’ve seen reports. Many good people didn’t survive that night.”

“One of my younger sister’s friends didn’t make it out alive, they barely found enough of her to get her a casket. Two of her teammates were severely injured.” Winter continued even though she had no idea why she was telling Robyn about all of this. Deployment was one of the risks every soldier had to face.

“Sounds like a rough time.” The blonde was so gentle and quiet, Winter almost didn’t hear her. “I hope a nice meal can distract your thoughts a little bit.”

Winter nodded, that sounded amazing. 

-

“So uh… this is the restaurant?” Restaurant was maybe the wrong term, they were deep in the faunus quarter and the house in front of them looked as if it might collapse any minute. 

“Yupp!” Robyn popped the ‘p’ and held the door open for Winter. It didn’t look as bad inside and thankfully it was very warm. A few faunus were enjoying their food and nobody seemed to be bothered by the two humans. 

“I don’t think you ever had Mantle cuisine. Like actual Mantle cuisine.” Robyn sat down at a table opposite to Winter. “So I recommend either the fire stew with fried butter potatoes, the smoked fish with freshly baked bread or meatballs with hot baked beans.” 

The dishes seemed simple but not bad, so Winter chose the fish. Robyn did the same. 

“So Robyn… we’ve been talking a lot about myself, but what about you?” Maybe she could find out some things she hadn’t known yet. 

“Me? There’s not much to me, I share a small house with my closest friends, I grew up in Mantle as an orphan and worked myself up to attend Atlas Academy. Once I graduated I finally had the ways to start my political career so I could help Mantle.” Winter nodded and sipped on her water. 

“So you’re thinking about becoming a member of the council now that you’re mayor.” Robyn narrowed her eyes for a second. “Good guess, that wasn’t public knowledge yet.” 

“It just seems to make sense.” Winter replied, Robyn trying to get a council seat was the main reason Ironwood considered her to be such a threat to him and the military. He knew that Robyn actually had a chance of succeeding. The older woman sighed quietly. “You’re not wrong, I plan to be the first councilwoman from Mantle even if it’s going to be hard. Mantle needs the help, especially the faunus here are dirt poor.”

“You could change a lot here…” Robyn nodded sadly and Winter found herself once more questioning her orders. The blonde just wanted the best for a forgotten city, how could this woman be an enemy? She was so lost in thoughts that she didn’t notice that neither of them had said anything in several minutes now.

“Robyn?”

“Hm?” 

“There’s something I need to tell you.” Robyn raised a brow at the young soldier, prompting her to go on.

“My full name is Winter Schnee, I’m the eldest daughter of Jacques Schnee.”

At first all Robyn could do was blink, but then she suddenly started to laugh hysterically. “A Schnee?! No surprise you look so familiar! Damn, I can’t believe it, no surprise you ran away to join the military, I’m an orphan and even I would run away if Jackass Schnee were my father.”

“His name is… Jacques.”

“I said what I said.”

Winter chuckled quietly but tried to hide it with a cough. Something about Robyn just drew her in, plus the way she talked about her father was truly hilarious. 

“So I assume you’re also not an ex-soldier?” 

“No, I’m still active, though not everything I said is a lie. Atlas can be a bit much at times and Mantle somehow makes me feel at ease.” 

Robyn nodded. “Well, I’m sure it would help if you meet some other people from here. My roommates are great friends, I’m sure you’d like it. We could watch a movie together?”

“Robyn Hill, are you inviting me over to your place right on the first date?”

“Would it be bad if I was?”

Winter gulped nervously, her throat felt suddenly very dry. “No.” She managed to say eventually and Robyn’s smirk caused her to blush. This woman was only 10% politician, the other 90% were flirt. 

“Let’s take this slow though, Snowflake. You’re interesting and I really enjoy talking to you. So if you’re up to it we could have a movie evening on Tuesday? I don’t work Wednesday morning, well, only paperwork and I’ll do that from home.”

“I… that could be nice. I hope your friends won’t mind me coming over.” 

“I never bring people home, so they better forgive me if I’m the one dragging strangers to our place this time.” 

“Then I will thankfully accept your inventation.”

“Still so formal, Snowflake.”

-

Ever after their dinner date they stayed in contact by texting each other daily for hours. For the first time in years the reason why Winter fell asleep with her scroll still in hand wasn’t military related – her only problem was stalling time. Ironwood was getting impatient, but he didn’t question her abilities. He knew how risky this whole operation was so he gave her as much time as she demanded. 

It was Tuesday already and Winter was honestly nervous. She’d meet the rest of Robyn’s Happy Huntresses and she wasn’t sure whether they’d accept her or not. Fiona was a faunus and faunus and Schnees had a difficult relationship, but so had the Marigolds and the Schnees. The only one she wasn’t actually worried about was Joanna Greenleaf. 

“You’re Special Operative Winter Schnee. You can handle a simple movie night.” 

Or at least she hoped so.

-

“Okay, so those are my friends, the tall one is Joanna Greenleaf, the sheep faunus Fiona Thyme and the broody one who glares at you is May Marigold.” Robyn introduced her three housemates and Winter nodded at each of them “Girls, this is Winter Schnee. Please play nice, she’s my guest.” 

Winter felt as if she was getting drilled by a higher ranking officer back in basic training, though at least Fiona seemed nice? She was quirky and smiling a lot, but Joanna and May looked a bit intimidating. Winter didn’t show any emotions though, she just glared back stoically. 

“I’ll get some popcorn. Fi? Do me a favor and fetch some wood for a nice fire and Joanna? I think some extra blankets and pillows might be nice. This is a girls night movie event, so let’s forget we’re all adults with difficult lives for a bit and enjoy this!” 

Only May and Winter were now in the living-room and it was incredibly awkward.

“Schnee.” May stepped closer and Winter returned the glare once more.

“Marigold.” It was tense, neither woman saying anything for a few moments. “You changed a lot since I last saw you.” 

May tensed, but whatever Winter had to say, she’d take it and fire back twice as hard. She was used to defending herself, defending her very existence. But instead of the usual hostility, Winter suddenly just gave the older woman a kind smile. 

“It suits you, you look happy.” This was not the reaction the blue-haired woman had expected. 

“Thanks, I… am. I go by May now.” Winter nodded, she had already known that, but it was May’s way of offering peace. “Understood. Well May, feel free to call me Winter, this isn’t a formal setting after all. We’re not in Atlas.”

May nodded as well and gave the specialist a small smile. “And thank the brothers for that.”

“You know, I’ve heard that my little sister finally gave Henry what he deserved. From what I heard she dumped an entire glass of water at your cousin right in front of half the Atlas elite!” 

“No way!! That’s hilarious!!” May switched from being serious to laughing in seconds, she couldn’t believe someone having the guts to treat an important Atlasian business partner like that. Just leave it to the Schnees to always be up for a surprise. 

“Well, I might not like your family name, but you seem alright. Plus Robyn is completely smitten by you and I’ve never seen that happen before.” Winter’s entire face flushed at the compliment. “And it seems you’re just as smitten by her. Try to keep it down at night, I like my sleep.”

Right when Winter wanted to argue, Joanna returned and dumped a whole lot of blankets right on their couch. The thing looked like it had seen better times, but it was big and all of them would fit on it comfortably, so the young soldier didn’t complain. 

Soon Robyn returned with two bowls of popcorn and Fiona was busy making a little fire to keep them warm throughout the night. 

“We got the new Spruce Willis movie!” Fiona announced almost bounced through the room – seriously, where did this woman get her energy? Was she storing it in her pocket dimension or what was going on?

“That sounds nice.” Winter wasn’t exactly up to date with popular movies so she trusted their judgement. 

Winter then sat down on the couch on the far left, Robyn right next to her. Then May, Fiona and Joanna who had handed everyone their own blanket and pillow.  
If the soldier was being honest then the movie wasn’t catching her attention. Both May and Fiona seemed to be very invested, but the story wasn’t really doing it for her. Having Robyn so close to her was a lot more exciting and thanks to the blanket, the others weren’t able to see that the blonde had been lightly rubbing her thigh the entire time. 

Winter wasn’t stupid, she knew about attraction and sexual tension, and she was very aware that the tension between her and Robyn was incredibly high. But she also knew that there was no way that she’d be able to act on those feelings, she had a mission. And Ironwood didn’t handle his soldiers failing very well. 

“Relax.” Robyn whispered, she had noticed that the soldier’s posture had changed. “It’s a fun evening after all.” 

Winter nodded softly and did something very uncharacteristically. She leaned against Robyn and rested her head on the older woman’s shoulder. It didn’t take long for her to fall asleep. 

-

“Hey, Snowflake…”

Winter grunted when someone was shaking her. She just was so tired and wanted to sleep some more.

“You can’t sleep on the couch, you’ll be sore in the morning.”

The smaller woman slowly opened her eyes and looked at Robyn. It was pitch black outside and the only light source in the room came from the TV. She noticed that the other three were already gone, probably off to get into their own beds, so only her and Robyn were left in the living-room. 

“Don’t wanna…” She muttered and yawned which caused Robyn to smile.

“Well, then I have no choice but to carry you.”

“Wait… what?”

Only moments later Robyn had scooped her up and held her bridal style. In this position Winter was pressed right against the blonde’s chest and she felt her cheeks warming at the thought. 

“Where are you taking me?” The very embarrassed woman asked while at least pretending to get away from this. 

“Bedroom, no way are you sleeping on the couch.” Robyn replied as if it was the most obvious answer ever.

Robyn’s room was a lot bigger than she had anticipated, most things were either green or beige, yet the room itself wasn’t too dark. It felt warm and cozy. “I hope you don’t mind wearing some of my things, it’s far too late for you to walk back home.” Robyn interrupted Winter’s stream of thoughts and the younger woman just nodded. As a soldier she was used to all kinds of sleeping accommodations after all. 

She changed quickly into a light green shirt, huntsmen and soldiers didn’t really have shame and it was not like either of them was completely naked. Yet Winter’s face felt incredibly warm just at the thought of catching a glance at Robyn in a barely dressed state.  
“You’re sleeping here too, right?” Winter asked quietly and Robyn hesitated. 

“I will if you don’t mind.”

“No, I don’t mind.”

“Okay.” 

It was a little bit awkward and the tension was high, Winter barely remembered how to breath at this point. 

She went into bed first and immediately covered herself with the blanket. Robyn followed after she had finished getting dressed and after she had turned off the lights. 

“Are you warm?”

“Could be warmer.”

Robyn wordlessly moved closer until she was able to pull Winter into her arms to hold her tightly. “The last few days were very nice, I really enjoyed spending time with you.”

“Oh Snowflake… mind if I do something?”

“Do wha-?” Robyn had leaned in to capture Winter’s lips in a soft kiss. There was no hunger or lust, just pure gentleness as if Robyn was pouring all her emotions into this little motion. 

“Wow…” Winter was speechless after they finally separated. Robyn Hill had just kissed her. Right here, right on this very bed. Her brain couldn’t deal with this information and shut down. 

“I’m sorry if I overstepped, but I really like you.” Robyn’s voice was soft, but Winter noticed a hint of fear. The blonde reached out to touch the soldier’s cheek to caress it gently.

“You didn’t… in fact I wouldn’t mind it if you did it again.” 

Robyn smiled and leaned in again, but this time Winter happily and eagerly welcomed her…


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robyn and Winter get closer, but things never stay peaceful forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, here's the second chapter. Hope you like it and thanks for all the comments and kudos!

“Get up you two!” For the first time in years Winter had slept past her military scheduled wake up time. She didn’t recognize the voice at first even though it sounded oddly familiar. 

“Get out, May!” Robyn grunted sleepily and flung her pillow at the other woman. “And stop smirking like that, I know exactly what you’re thinking! And that absolutely didn’t happen!” 

May easily dodged the pillow and folded her arms in front of her chest. “Oh? And what am I thinking? Maybe I should steal the blanket to check. You know, just to be absolutely sure.”

Even if Winter couldn’t see it, she could almost ‘feel’ Robyn rolling her eyes next to her. Then she threw the blanket away and Winter huffed. It was immediately significantly colder and she didn’t like that.

“See? We’re still wearing clothes. So can it, Marigold and get lost!”

“Sure sure, but Fiona is making breakfast. So don’t take too long here.”

“Just fuck off!” 

May left with a smirk and closed the door behind her. 

“Finally some quiet and piece.”

“Snowflake, if you want quiet and piece you’re in the wrong house.” Robyn smirked and stretched, Winter blushed at the way Robyn’s chest was pushed forward. It should be forbidden to be this hot! 

“So, after last night…” Winter wasn’t sure how to start this conversation, but luckily Robyn had her back. 

“We can do this slow if you want, but if you want me to be your girlfriend I wouldn’t say no.”

“You would date me?” Winter was still blushing, she might be a soldier with a great poker face, but romantic issues or human relations never came easy to her. It was a Schnee thing. Both her siblings were just as awkward and her mother had horrible tastes regarding romantic interests. 

“No, those kisses last night were an accident, I just slipped. Repeatedly.” 

Winter huffed and tried her very best to stop herself from pouting. 

“But… to answer your question, yes, I would date you. I wouldn’t even hesitate or anything.” Robyn said and Winter looked up. Robyn was probably the most interesting person she had ever met, she was fighting for what she believed in and she always looking out for other people. Winter was almost jealous, she had been so focused on getting out of her abusive home that she had left both her younger siblings and her own mother behind. 

“What’s on your mind, Snowflake? You were suddenly gone.” Robyn reached out and removed some stray hair out of Winter’s face. 

“Just… family stuff. Nothing that matters right now.” She sighed. “And I’d… really like to date you, too. But won’t the people be displeased when they find out that their mayor is dating an Atlasian elite soldier from the richest family of the country?” Robyn shrugged, though she actually had thought about this possibility. 

“I believe in equal rights for all lovers. If I can show the people that it’s not wrong to love the enemy, then maybe it will also help the faunus-humans alliance that is still fighting for equal marriage rights.”

Winter almost flinched at the word enemy, was that what Mantle and Atlas were? 

Yes, they were.

Atlas wasn’t protecting Mantle like Ironwood claimed all the time, Atlas was exploiting Mantle and leaving the city too poor and weakened to defend themselves. And she had played her part, but this time was over.

“But back to your answer, so you really wanna be my girlfriend?” Robyn smirked and Winter blushed before nodding softly. “Then come here~”

The older woman pulled Winter into another sweet kiss, but soon the innocent gesture turned into a bit… more. Winter groaned and buried her hands into Robyn’s hair who took this encouragement to roll on top of the small soldier. 

Running her hands up and down Winter’s sides, Robyn was looking for a way to get under her shirt, and just when she found a bit of bare skin…

“No funny business before breakfast!” Someone – obviously May – yelled from a different room. 

“So it’s okay if I take Winter on the kitchen table as long as it’s after breakfast? You sure have interesting rules, Marigold!” Robyn yelled back and groaned in a clearly frustrated way. 

“Sure, though two breakfasts right after one another doesn’t sound healthy.”

Another eye roll. “I swear I’ll kill that girl eventually…” Robyn muttered before looking down at her girlfriend. Winter was panting softly and her cheeks were flushed. Her eyes still showed just how turned on she was from their make-out session and Robyn had a hard time resisting her like this.

“That was… interesting.” The soldier tried to calm down and to even her erratic breath, but it was difficult with Robyn still on top of her and straddling her waist. Again, it seriously should be illegal to be this hot!

“Interesting is not exactly my word of choice here, but I guess I can agree.” The blonde slowly got up and got dressed in her usual attire. Winter was still trying to catch her breath but eventually she got up as well.

-

In the kitchen the other three women had waited for the couple to arrive. May was sipping on her coffee and winking at the two while Joanna smiled and Fiona smirked giddily. 

“So… what I said yesterday still counts. Be quiet at night, I like my sleep.” May said and continued drinking while Robyn rolled her eyes.

“You three are awful, why do I even keep you around?”

“Because you love us. Not as much as Winter though.” Quipped Fiona and after a glare Robyn sighed and nodded. The faunus had a point. Winter in the meantime had a bit of a hard time adjusting to this… atmosphere. She only knew soldier life and even before that meal times had always been rather… tense at Schnee manor. 

The food was simple but good, some bread, coffee and tea, some cheese and some fruits. Winter also spotted some oatmeal and honey. 

She enjoyed listening to the group of friends, they were happy around and they clearly respected each other and each other’s boundaries. Winter was respected by her men, she knew that, but it was a different kind of respect. They respected her as a military officer and for her strength, but not for the kind of person she was or for her character. 

-

Winter spent more and more time at the Happy Huntress house these days and she barely returned to the motel anymore. Being in Mantle showed her a new view on certain things, but the more she learned, the harder it got to convince Ironwood that she needed more time. If she was being honest, then she wouldn’t mind things staying like this forever. 

General Ironwood wasn’t known for patience, but Winter knew that he trusted her and her abilities. So if she said that she needed more time since the mission proved to be more difficult than expected, then he believed her. The question was: how long would she be able to keep this up?

“I can hear you thinking.” Robyn handed her a cup of freshly brewed Mantle coffee. In the beginning she had disliked the taste of this particular brand since it tasted like acorns, but now she actually appreciated the rather bitter liquid. 

“I was just thinking about work…” The soldier sighed and stared at the still steaming coffee. It was far too hot to drink anytime soon. 

“Anything you wanna talk about?” Winter hesitated, she couldn’t tell her girlfriend that she actually had the order to kill her. Robyn could be a chill person if she wasn’t dealing with politics, but there was no way that she’d take this well – even after knowing her for a while now. 

Before she actually had the chance to answer her scroll vibrated. 

“Tomorrow. Get the robin to Mantle Square and make sure it stays until 1810.” 

Winter felt her heart beating faster, she understood immediately what this order meant. Apparently Ironwood had finally snapped and waited enough. Winter knew this day would come and if she was being honest, then she was surprised it had taken Ironwood months to act – yet reality coming back to haunt her was frightening.

“Robyn.” 

“Hm?”

“Do you trust me?” It was obvious to Robyn that something very serious was worrying Winter and that in return worried the blonde.

“What’s that supposed to mean, of course I do. We’re dating after all.”

The younger woman sighed, this would be… difficult.

“Tomorrow you’re supposed to talk to the public regarding the upcoming council election. I know it starts at 3PM and that those can take a while.” Tomorrow would be the start of Robyn trying to fight for her seat on the council, things hadn’t been exactly official yet, but Robyn wanted to be seen as much as possible.

She listened patiently and waited for Winter to continue. She even put her coffee down to show Winter that she had her complete attention and that she could continue. 

“At 6.10PM something might happen.”

“Something might happen?”

“You are not very well-liked by the elites in Atlas.”

“I’m aware that I’m hated.”

“Yes, but actually you are… considered a threat.” Finally Robyn seemed to understand, her eyes widened in shock. Winter closed her own eyes and waited, she was sure the blonde would yell at her, be disappointed and even break up with her. But nothing like that happened. Instead:

“Snowflake, you just saved my life.” And she leaned in for a short, sweet kiss. Winter, who had worried so much about Robyn finding out about her mission, about her life, wasn’t angry or mad. 

The soldier felt like crying.

-

6PM sharp, the public debate was still going strong and Winter as well as every single Happy Huntress were on edge. Robyn was standing on a small podium and talking to the crowd in front of her, next to her was Joanna as some kind of guard. Fiona and Winter stood a bit on the left. 

The issue was that Winter wasn’t exactly sure what would happen, but then… Something reflected in a window which caught her attention. A lens? A mirror? No. 

“May.” Winter tapped her headpiece to get the older woman’s attention as well. “Get invisible. White house with the wooden door, 3rd floor. Probably the 4th apartment. Hurry!” 

“On my way!” 

It was 6.04PM now, they were running out of time. If May didn’t reach that apartment in time, Robyn would need to leave immediately. Winter glanced at her girlfriend, if the blonde was nervous, then she wasn’t showing it. Winter was amazed by the amount of trust Robyn had in her friends, but the soldier felt like she was about to faint. Years of training to handle situations like this yet she felt like a trainee all over again.

6.05PM. Winter was starting to sweat. 

6.06PM. Her throat felt tight and dry. 

6.07PM. Still nothing.

6.08PM. Finally! May’s voice was back in her ear.

“Threat eliminated, found a sniper with a dust powered rifle, wears civilian clothes but military dog tags.” May reported and Winter released her breath she hadn’t even known she was holding. 

6.10PM. Nothing out of the ordinary happened and Robyn continued her speech and the debate. The threat was eliminated and her girlfriend out of danger for now. But Winter was worried, Ironwood would be furious if he heard about this, she was sure of that. 

She already felt her scroll vibrating in her pocket, but she ignored the call. The general could wait, the Happy Huntresses would celebrate after this. Still, Winter looked worried and on edge, she almost yelped when she felt a hand on her back. Fiona had placed her palm against her lower back and was smiling up at her. “Don’t worry, we’ll get through this together.”

The soldier returned the smile, but she still felt like a traitor. She still had a mission, hadn’t she? Sure, she had already decided that she wouldn’t obey those orders, but technically it was still her mission.

“Of course we will. People like Robyn are just… too stubborn too die.”

Fiona chuckled and both women focused on said blonde again. Robyn had a way with words that was simply impossible to describe. Winter was used to listening to people with authority speaking – which Robyn technically was, after all she was the mayor – but none of those people had ever sounded like Robyn Hill. When Winter listened to people like Jacques, Ironwood or the Marigolds she felt as if she was on the very bottom, as if those people would use her to wipe their boots clean. 

But Robyn spoke like someone who was being serious, someone who didn’t need lies or yelling to get heard. And the people, humans and faunus alike just absolutely loved her.

Eventually Robyn left the small stage to meet up with her friends and girlfriend. Her hair was clinging to the sweat on her face and her cheeks were slightly flushed. Talking in public like this while someone was after your ass was exhausting. 

Winter couldn’t stop but stare at the blonde, she was smiling widely and trying to calm down from her high and if Winter was being honest then the only thing she wanted to do right now was kiss Robyn senseless. But she couldn’t, not while they were still in public. 

-

Back at the Happy Huntress Headquarter they celebrated Robyn’s success. The people just loved her, the polls gave her currently 79% of agreement as mayor of Mantle and she seemed to win over more and more voters. With rates like this she could easily run for councilwoman. 

“To our girl who steals the hearts of everyone who listens to her. Robyn, thief of hearts!” Fiona almost spilled some of her beer, the young faunus wasn’t exactly known for handling alcohol very well. Joanna gently put the smaller woman’s bottle down and smiled. “I think you had enough for one evening. Fiona just whined, then she pouted.

Even Winter, who had a rather difficult relationship to alcohol, smiled at the two. She had no idea what was going on between those two, but there was a gentleness there that was hard to miss. She glanced at Robyn who was sitting next to her. Just like herself the blonde didn’t drink anything alcoholic and Winter had a feeling Robyn was doing this for her. 

“No Jooo!!” Fiona whined when the taller woman snatched her beer to take a sip herself. “I’m not done yet!” 

“Oh you absolutely are. You’re a mix of excited and close to falling asleep right here on the spot.” 

“Jo got a point, Fi.” May was always ready to tease one of her friends. “And to be honest, it’s getting late. I’m gonna get some sleep.” With that the former Atlasian elite got up and she was only stumbling a little bit.

“Good idea. I’ll get this one to bed as well.” Fiona squealed when Joanna suddenly picked her up to carry her bridal style. “And you two should go to bed as well, it was an exhausting and stressful day.” She nodded at Robyn and Winter before carrying a smol complaining faunus out of the room. 

Suddenly it was very quiet and Winter wanted to talk to her girlfriend. Tell her about her secrets and her feelings… but instead, as if Robyn felt her inner struggles she pulled the younger woman into a gentle kiss.

“I might not understand everything…” Robyn’s voice was smooth and gentle after they separated. “And we’ve only been dating for a little while, but Winter? I do know that I love you.”

Winter felt her heart beating in her chest, almost painfully intense now. Robyn loved her, despite the secrets she kept.

“I… I love you too.”

Robyn pulled her into another kiss, her hands buried in Winter’s hair as she tried to get as close as humanly possible. Her tongue pushed against the younger woman’s lips who eagerly welcomed her before moaning softly. Her hands found their way under Robyn’s shirt and she found warm skin. To her surprise Robyn shivered at her touch. 

“W-wow…” Robyn was trying to catch her breath after this intense make-out session. “I think we should take this back to my room. I’m not eager on taking this too far here on the living-room carpet.” Winter just blushed breathing erratically as well, but eventually she nodded. 

Just like Joanna had done with Fiona earlier, Robyn picked Winter up and carried her to her own bedroom. She kicked the door close behind her and didn’t care how bad that was for the old wood. She carefully laid Winter down on the bed and immediately started to strip. First her scarf, then her shirt and pants. 

The young soldier sat up and could only stare with wide eyes and flushed cheeks. Hesitantly she started to undo her own clothes as well. “Let me help…” Robyn’s hands reached for Winter’s shirt and Winter let her. 

Neither of them said anything until they were both only in their underwear. 

“I’m glad I didn’t drink tonight.”

“Why’s that?” Winter flushed again when Robyn slowly licked her lips. 

“If I were drunk I wouldn’t be able to enjoy this. When I’m with you then I always want to be completely clear in my head.”

The blonde moved and straddled Winter’s hips, her hands resting on her shoulders before leaning in for another hungry kiss. Winter sighed when Robyn’s hands found their way under her white bra. The fabric was quickly annoying her, so she reached around and easily unclasped it. Winter felt her face heating up again and she really really really(!!) wanted to wipe that smirk out of Robyn’s face – but that would mean stopping kissing. 

Winter leaned back until her back hit the mattress pulling Robyn with her until the blonde was lying flush on top of her. 

“I could’ve lost you today…” Mumbled the younger woman and buried her face against Robyn’s neck. “If something had went wrong… if May hadn’t found the target in time…”

“But you didn’t lose me.” Robyn gently caressed Winter’s cheek, her skin felt surprisingly warm. “Yes, it was risky, I’m still here, you can see me… you can feel me touching you.”

Winter nodded weakly. She calmed down quickly under the blonde’s careful touch. She had no idea how it was possible, but just Robyn’s presence had an effect on her that no human had had on her before. 

“I wouldn’t mind you touching me more.”

Robyn smiled, the younger woman’s entire face was completely flushed and red, for someone so confident and of high military rank as her, Winter sure got flustered easily. 

“But I’m already touching you, snowflake.” As if to emphasize Robyn’s hand travelled down Winter’s side causing her to shiver and even whine. “Or do you mean a different kind of touch?”

Winter didn’t reply, so Robyn leaned in to leave little butterfly kisses all over her girlfriend’s throat and collar bone while her hands still caressed her sides. When she reached her hips she adjusted her position slightly and instead of straddling Winter she spread the younger woman’s legs so she could lay down between them. The soldier immediately wrapped her legs around Robyn to pull her closer and the blonde smirked.

“Eager, Snowflake?” She looked down and the way Winter hungrily returned her gaze caused her to gulp. This woman was far too hot for her to handle, but Robyn wouldn’t mind melting for her.

Eagerly they kissed again while Robyn snuck a hand between their bodies until she found the fabric of Winter’s underwear. The blonde immediately felt just how excited the younger woman already was, but Robyn wouldn’t be Robyn without a little bit of teasing. She slowly rubbed her girlfriend through the material until Winter needily whimpered into their kiss. 

“Didn’t know you were so responsive to just a little touching.” Robyn was only teasing a little bit. It was obvious that the soldier was rather touch-starved, but she would’ve thought that at least sexually she’d get laid every now and then to get rid of some frustration and tension. 

“Shut up!” Winter almost growled and arched into the older woman’s experienced touch who was still rubbing her gently. Only after Winter’s panties were thoroughly ruined did she slip past them and was greeted with warmth and wetness. 

“Don’t get too excited just yet…” She whispered against Winter’s neck while Winter had a hard time to stop herself from squirming and moaning. “Because I wanna make you feel even better than this.” Robyn suddenly pulled the annoying fabric down and lifted herself up until she was kneeling between Winter’s legs. The ruined underwear quickly landed on the floor next to the bed and even Winter’s glare couldn’t make Robyn move any faster.

“Who would’ve guessed that someone so straightforward as you would be such an impatient bottom?” Robyn teased, her voice thick with sarcasm and arousal. She had to fight a chuckle when Winter glared at her though.

“Please, I’m a switch and not a bottom!” Winter almost sounded insulted.

“Sure, keep telling yourself that, maybe it’ll be true one day!” Winter glared even harder than before and if Robyn weren’t so deeply in love, she’d probably be very scared of the shorter woman. 

She didn’t give Winter time to argue about this, instead she gently spread her legs a bit further. “As for now… just relax.” For emphasis she winked once at Winter before slowly moving down until she was able to taste her arousal with her tongue.

Winter almost squeaked at the sudden touch, but Robyn kept her firmly in place before repeating the motion with her tongue over and over again… 

-

“You know Robyn…” May smirked at the couple hiding underneath the blanket. It was the next morning and the two were missing breakfast once again – so obviously it was up to May to get them. “… when you said ‘eat the rich’ I didn’t think you meant that literally.” The blue-haired woman could barely keep herself from laughing, catching the two like that was just too hilarious. This would last as teasing material for months! She glanced around, both their clothes were sprawled all over the floor and May whistled. “Woah Schnee, I would’ve thought you wear military issues underwear. But those actually look kinda cute.”

“I swear May, if you don’t get out this instance I’ll spank you right here until you can’t sit for a week! You know I’m not known for empty threats!” Robyn growled and reached for her pillow so she could throw it at her friend. By now mornings like this seemed to be norm, May waking them up, Robyn throwing a pillow at her and Winter dying from embarrassment. 

“Don’t worry, I’m not risking that. But you two should seriously consider taking a shower before joining us for breakfast. Fi has great smell thanks to her faunus senses.” May replied before finally giving the young couple some privacy. 

“I swear, that woman…” Robyn looked down just to find Winter still trying to hide under the blanket. “Hey, she’s gone now.” But Winter didn’t move and Robyn got a bit concerned. 

“Snowflake… you uh, you don’t regret last night, do you?” She carefully lifted the covers a little bit just to find a very flustered Schnee. “No, I don’t. Last night was amazing. I just think we really should consider using the lock on your door. I really don’t like the thought of one of your friends bursting into the room while your head is buried between my legs.”

The way Winter delivered that last sentence in such a deadpan way caused Robyn to completely lose it. She started laughing hysterically while Winter just huffed before hiding back under the blanket. 

“No no Snowflake, it’s shower time now! We need to wash off all the sinning from last night.” 

Winter hesitated, but eventually she complied. While she appreciated the way Robyn’s scent was clinging to her, a warm shower just sounded amazing. 

“Fine.”

-

“Morning, huntresses!” Robyn stepped into the kitchen and basically fell into a chair. “What’s it for breakfast, I’m starving!”

“How can you be starving, you were eating all night.” May quipped, but Robyn was in too good of a mood to actually glare at her. Instead she just smirked. “Jealous, Mayflower? You should invite your secret boyfriend over some time, maybe then you’d loosen up a little bit.” May blushed at that comment and decided that her morning coffee was suddenly a lot more interesting than teasing Robyn.

“Good morning.” Winter entered the kitchen as well, she was still trying to dry her white hair with a surprisingly fluffy blanket. Getting a cold in Mantle was really not recommended and just like Robyn she was in a pretty good mood. 

Fiona then handed her a plate with some bread and two slices of cheese. “I hope you like butter, I remembered that you liked cheese on your bread so I felt free to prepare you some.”

And Winter did, so she thankfully took her breakfast. She felt famished and the atmosphere with the huntresses was always so relaxing – and so far away from the stiff routine of being a soldier. Weird, not long ago that routine had given her comfort and mental stability. 

“By the way Robyn, there was a letter for you in the mail. No stamp or name, so apparently someone brought it here in person. Looks fancy though.” Joanna suddenly spoke up and pointed at the letter that was currently lying on the counter behind her. Robyn nodded at her and Joanna reached for it so she could hand it over.

Not caring that she was getting butter on the envelop she used the knife to slice the thin paper open. “I’m… invited?” She read out loud and every women in the room stopped what they were doing to listen. “I’m invited to Atlas. I need to prepare a speech and declare that I’m officially running for a seat on the council.”

“I’m surprised they’re inviting you before your official declaration…” May muttered, she was suspicious of this whole thing. The way the letter had been delivered, the failed assassination attempt… and Winter agreed with her. The two of them had spent too much of their life in Atlas, and Atlas was never kind – especially not to its enemies. “What do you think, Winter?”

“I… don’t think this is how things usually work.”

“So what you’re saying is that you two both think it’s a trap.” May and Winter both nodded stiffly, a habit from their Atlasian days. 

“Well, if they think they can get me to back out of this then they are wrong! I’ll go to Atlas, but I’ll be prepared! Ironwood can threaten me however he wants, hell, he can even try to bribe me, but it won’t work!” Robyn announced before slamming the letter down on the table. Fiona squeaked since her orange juice almost spilled over thanks to the sudden movement. 

“The letter wants me to come alone, but all four of you will join me. May, you think you can keep up your semblance for a rather long time? Like an hour?” May nodded at that and gave Robyn a thumbs up. She had been training her endurance a lot lately, and even with the extra stress of having to return to Atlas, she knew she’d be able to handle this.

“Good. Winter, you’re one of Ironwood’s best and highest ranking officers, so it shouldn’t be hard for you to come with me. Just pretend that you’re actually walking me straight into a trap. Congrats, you’re a double agent now.” Now Winter nodded. “Fiona and Joanna? You will make sure that we’re able to leave quickly if necessary.”

“If my assumption is correct, then Ironwood is the only one who will know about this.” The young soldier suddenly spoke up. “The general is not known for trusting many people, even the Ace Ops are not always included in his plans. I’m not sure what to expect, but we need to be ready for anything.” 

“Don’t worry, soldier girl. We’ll show him our teeth.”

-

“Here we are. Atlas. The city of dreams.” 

Both May and Winter scoffed at Fiona’s words. Sure, the scenery was great, public transport was amazing… but the people living here absolutely sucked. And the Atlas Elites sucked even more. The faunus of the team was actually a bit excited about being here again, the first time she had seen Atlas in all her glory was during her days at the academy. 

A young faunus from the slums of Mantle, her uncle had worked day and night to be able to send his niece to combat school. “The city hasn’t changed much.”

“Atlas doesn’t like changes, nor do the people.” May stated as if it was nothing. “That includes… certain family businesses as well.” The huntresses were quiet, everyone knew exactly what May was talking about.

The mood was tense, neither of them were sure what to expect from this whole mission. 

“A lot of those houses were built on the bones of faunus slave labor… as a councilwoman maybe I could try to get some of the more corrupt assholes behind bars.”

“I suggest starting with Jacques Schnee.” Replied Winter drily without even looking up. 

“I second that. Afterwards maybe the Marigolds, I’m sure I can still get you plenty of evidence.” May quipped in before glancing at Winter for a second. Even in her wildest dreams she wouldn’t have thought that one day she’d go on missions to liberate Mantle together with Winter fucking Schnee. But now that she thought about it, were they really that different? Both born into rich, oppressive families with a name that is nothing but a burden. Sure, Winter didn’t hate her body, but she was gayer than a rainbow and just being LGBT in general… that stuff didn’t happen in Atlas. They weren’t so different after all and suddenly May was sad that she hadn’t realized this years sooner. 

“Everyone remembers the plan? Are there questions?” Everything was clear, but it was normal even for experienced huntresses and soldiers to get nervous. 

They landed their vehicle on an academy platform a bit hidden from the rest. Joanna and Fiona would stay here, armed and ready, while May would get both Winter and Robyn unseen all the way to Ironwood’s office. 

“No talking from now on.” The blue-haired woman muttered before activating her semblance to shield them with a force field from foreign eyes. They passed soldiers and students alike, but luckily it wasn’t a busy day. 

“I’ll be down the hallway in case you need me.” May whispered while Winter and Robyn left the safety of her force field. “It will take me less than 20 seconds to get to you. Good luck you two, and show him your teeth.” 

Robyn and Winter now stood in front the general’s office door. They both had seen it from the inside before, Winter more so than Robyn for obvious reasons. The soldier knocked twice, her posture stiff and unmoving while they waited for Ironwood to answer. “Come in.”

“You first.” Winter said quietly before following after her girlfriend and closing the door behind them. 

“Miss Hill? You are early?” Ironwood sounded confused for a moment, he hadn’t expected Robyn to visit today. “And Specialist Schnee.” Out of habit Winter stood next to Ironwood behind his desk, her arms folded behind her back while years of training and indoctrination kicked in. “Sir, Miss Hill couldn’t attend on the official date, so I suggested a different day. Sadly I wasn’t able to inform you beforehand, but I assume this will work as well.”

“I see. Thank you Specialist Schnee.” Winter saluted quickly and Robyn, who watched the entire interaction almost shivered. Apparently Specialist Schnee and Winter Schnee were two very different people. 

“Miss Hill, you’re probably wondering why exactly I invited you.”

“Actually, no. I’m pretty sure I’m here because I’m trying to become a member of the council.” 

“Your assumption is correct. Now you see, there are some… issues. The Atlas Council never had a member originating from Mantle.”

“I’m well aware of that, but the people love me and they will vote for me.”

“We can’t exactly accept Mantle to become more powerful and-“

“More powerful? Are you even listening to yourself? Mantle has nothing, no military presence in case of Grimm attacks, people sleeping on the streets, working themselves to death for the rich Atlasians!” Robyn was starting to get angry already, Ironwood was talking like every other rich bitch she had ever met. 

“Miss Hill, please calm down.” Ironwood was looking calm on the outside, but Winter had known him for most her life and she knew that he was currently absolutely furious.

“No! Atlas has been going too far for too long! I will become a member of the council and I won’t rest until I changed things. Mantle needs help, and Atlas will finally own up to the decades of exploitation!” The blonde turned around to leave, for her this conversation was over and just when she wanted to reach for the door handle, Ironwood stood up. 

“Miss Hill!” His voice was firm, showing that he wouldn’t accept any form of backtalk right now. “Don’t dare to leave right now! I didn’t spend years of building Atlas into the city it is just for Mantle to think they can do as they please! Atlas needs as much resources as possible in case of Grimm attacks! I can’t allow any of those resources to go to Mantle instead!”

But Robyn was a stubborn woman who never backed out of anything. She wouldn’t be mayor if she were different. “It’s time that things change, general.” She hissed and Ironwood had enough. He stood right in front of the blonde now, his weapon drawn but still pointing against the floor. 

Robyn’s eyes widened and she slowly raised her hands, Ironwood nodded at the floor and the young woman took the hint. She had expected things to get difficult, for the Ironwood to try a lot to make her obey – but this? Yes, he had send an assassin after her - and Winter, but murdering her right here in his office?!

“Robyn Hill. In the name of the Atlas Military and the Atlasian Council I sentence you to death. For treason against the state of Atlas and its people which means there won’t be a trial. Therefore this sentence will be carried out immediately. By me.”

Ironwood pointed the weapon against the kneeling woman’s forehead. Robyn closed her eyes, expecting this to be her end. Seriously, the huntresses had expected things to escalate, but they hadn’t expected this situation to escalate like this.

Ironic. She had wanted to make a change for the people, but in the end she hadn’t changed anything at all. 

“No.” 

Robyn opened her eyes again and the sight in front of her almost took her breath away. 

Winter had her own gun pointed at Ironwood’s head. Her hand was trembling and she felt as if she was about to break under the pressure. “You won’t shoot her.”

“Winter?” Winter had never heard Ironwood so confused and shocked. She had been his right hand almost since her graduation from the academy, he had personally groomed her into the soldier she was today. “What are you doing? Robyn Hill is endangering Atlas and all we fought for! If we weaken Atlas, Grimm might be able to overrun us!” 

He didn’t move, keeping his gun pointed at Robyn while he spoke firmly. “You are throwing your entire career away, your future! I made you who you are today!” 

Winter was shaking terribly; his words went straight for her heart and soul. She owned Ironwood her life, without him she would have never been able to leave Jacques. 

“I’m helping Atlas!” She hissed through gritted teeth. “I’ve seen Mantle, I’ve stayed in Mantle! Atlas doesn’t care about anything but Atlas, people are dying on the streets because they’re lacking food while people throw entire buffets away in the so called city of dreams! And you? You lost your damn mind!”

Slowly she stopped trembling, her weapon was pressed directly against the general’s head now. 

“You consider Robyn a threat because she’s loved by the people, she’s a threat to your power! Atlas is scared of sharing its wealth, the wealth it got by exploiting Mantle and the faunus!” 

“Special Operative Schnee. If you don’t stop this right now you will lose everything!”

“No. Meeting Robyn gave me everything I ever wanted. Someone who loved me. But how would you understand. You even lost your heart.”

Winter pulled the trigger and immediately fell to her knees, her white Atlasian uniform splattered with blood. Just what had she done.

She had killed General James Ironwood.

“Winter!” 

Suddenly a pair of strong arms were wrapped around her, snapping Winter out of her thoughts and making her lean against Robyn’s taller frame.

“What have I done…” She sobbed pathetically, shaking and trembling tremendously. 

“You saved my life. That’s what you did.” Robyn spoke as quietly and calmly as possible, if she wasn’t careful the soldier would get a full on panic attack and they really didn’t need that. “It’s okay Snowflake, we’ll get through this together…” If she was being honest, then Robyn had no idea what to do, but right now the sobbing soldier in her arms was everything who mattered. 

“And I know this is hard for you right now, but we need to leave. We can’t be found here in Ironwood’s office right next to his body!” 

Winter nodded hesitantly and got up. Luckily Robyn was helping her staying upright; otherwise she would’ve broken down all over again. Both of them were covered in blood, but the color was a lot more visible on the younger woman’s white uniform. 

“Listen to me now! I will give May the signal and she will get us out of here with her semblance while Joanna and Fiona will help in case we need to fight our way out of here.” Another nod, Winter understood the plan and agreed with it.

Even breathing was difficult right now.

-

When May arrived, she had no idea how to react to this. There were both Robyn and Winter covered in blood right in front of the obviously very dead general. “I better get an explanation for this later…” She muttered before turning all three of them invisible. It wouldn’t be easy to get them out of here, but she was a pro after all. 

Winter was a nervous wreck while they snuck outside, thoughts were fighting other thoughts until her brain was unable to function properly. 

Getting to the airship wasn’t as difficult as expected, but the huntresses stayed alert. If someone found Ironwood, all hell would break lose! 

“What have I done…?” Muttered Winter repeatedly while Robyn fastened the seatbelt around her. 

“You just saved Mantle. Without Ironwood we have a chance to finally make things better… Winter, you’re a hero! I actually have a chance now to become a member of the council!” But Robyn’s words barely reached her, it would take time for Winter to actually recover from this shock. 

To Robyn Ironwood had been an enemy, a dictator and heartless soldier, but for Winter he had been like a father. Heh, she really had traded one abusive father figure for another, hadn’t she?

“I think… I’d like to rest a bit.” Winter replied and stared out of the window. Atlas, the city of dreams. More like city of nightmares, staying in Mantle had finally opened her eyes. For the first time in her life Winter felt as if she was actually seeing things clearly. And the view was beautiful. 

“You know Robyn… Councilwoman Hill has a nice ring. You got my vote.” She smiled and Robyn chuckled. “I love you, Snowflake.”

-

“After General Ironwood’s assassination a team of specialists is still investigating the scene. According to Ace Ops Agent Marrow Amin it was an outsider who-…”

Robyn turned the volume down and smirked at May. “Seems like your boyfriend got this under control.” 

May rolled her eyes. “He’s not my boyfriend, and are you surprised? He grew up as a faunus in the slums, he understands that Ironwood was never good for Mantle and Atlas.” To everyone’s surprise her cheeks did redden a little bit. The other huntresses smirked at her, maybe there was indeed something going on with May and the cute Ace Ops rookie.

“For someone that isn’t your boyfriend you seem to know a lot about him.” Well, there was no way to get out of this now, was there? So May did the only thing logical: She stopped replying and they focused on the news broadcast again.

“-lections will be hold in three weeks, current candidates Robyn Hill and-“ The news reporter was still talking, but nobody was actually listening to him anymore. It was May teasing time – though the girl knew how to brat herself out of a situation like this.

Winter smiled at the friendly banter, the Happy Huntresses had given her a family, something she never had. 

“I think I’ll apply for the position of headmaster.”

“Huh?” Winter hadn’t discussed this with any of her friends or her girlfriend before, so their surprise wasn’t… well, surprising.

“Yes, Atlas Academy needs a new leader and the Atlas Elites will only accept someone who comes from an elite family.” She explained and noticed how May scoffed in the background. “I’m a Schnee and a high ranking officer, even the Ace Ops report back to me, so Atlas would vote for me. And as Robyn’s girlfriend I could make sure Mantle gets heard, too, like… a special faunus scholarship program for the start.” 

“That sounds amazing!” Fiona was immediately agreeing with her, as a faunus herself she knew how hard it was to get any kind of combat training in Atlas or Mantle. Joanna simply nodded and May hummed. “Your arguments are great, you’d be perfect for this job!”

Now only Robyn’s opinion was missing and admittedly Winter was a little bit nervous. 

“I think that’s the best idea I heard all day! General Winter Schnee and Councilwoman Robyn Hill. I like it!”

Winter released her breath she hadn’t even noticed she had been holding. Life wasn’t perfect, but it was getting better and she was doing her part in all of this. 

“Let’s raise our glasses to a new Atlas! And to a new Mantle!” 

“To a new world!”

“To a new government!”

“To a new relationship between faunus and humans!”

“To a bright future!”

Things were truly looking up for both Mantle and Atlas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it, I finished my first Snowbyrd story and I'm honestly a little bit proud. If you liked it please leave a comment or kudo - or even both!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you like it, chapter two will be available soon :)  
> If you enjoyed it, please leave a kudo, it helps me figuring out whether I'm growing as a author or not (and to all my fellow fanfiction writers who also write stories in a foreign language - keep going, making mistakes is part of the learning process! Seriously, English can be hard...)


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